Flowers bloom at Ship of Fools gallery Summer show
For the duration of Summer 2026 I have four flower paintings on show in the Ship of Fools gallery Summer exhibition, alongside some beautiful work by other artists from Orkney and further afield. I’m very grateful to Maiwenn and her team for once again allowing me the opportunity to show my work in public. While on show, the work is for sale exclusively through the gallery – contact details on their Facebook page.
I have had it in mind to do flower painting for quite some time. My art often has a rather dark subject matter but in fact I am struck by the beauty of the natural world on a daily basis, and inspired by it (although dismayed by what mankind is doing to it). Having recently acquired an airbrush, I felt that flowers were an appropriate subject upon which to practice using my new tool.
The airbrush is quite finicky to use, requiring a light touch, careful cleaning, and attention to ink consistency. It is very satisfying and fun to use when everything is running smoothly, but it did require some troubleshooting on occasion!
These paintings of daffodils and tulips were created using a variety of hand-drawn and cut-out stencils of flower shapes, petals and leaves. I also utilised real flowers and leaves as stencils for the background textures of the pictures. This was very much a learning process and the resulting paintings are not perfect, but I am happy with the overall effect. There is potential here for further experimentation, and I am working towards a larger piece.
If you find yourself in Orkney this Summer, do come into the gallery to see these pieces and many more by other artists.
